When Black Roses Bloom

  Twisting about in place, Kodachi whipped out a long, flowing white
ribbon in one hand, and a blood-red ball in the other. Raising both
to the sky, she shouted, "See these, Ranma?!"
  "Big deal," replied Ranma, uninterested. "So what're ya going to do
with those that I haven't seen before?"
  "Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho!" laughed Kodachi. Raising the ribbon, she
declared, "Behold, the godly gymnastics apparatus, the Ribbon of
Tears, containing the tears of gymnastics girls who could not find
true love!"
  Akane shook her head. "Oh, not THAT thing again!" she muttered,
remembering the battle when a group of three male gymnastics
martial artists sought to 'win back' gymnastics as a guy's sport
with the three godly weapons. The Ribbon, as both Ranma and Kodachi
can attest to, spat a sticky pink bubble gum-like liquid substance
that bonded like super glue.
  "I would've figured she'd think twice before touching THAT again,"
commented Ranma.
  "Shut up, hermaphrodite!" snarled Taro. "Kodachi can use ANYTHING
she wants in the name of revenge!"
  Raising the red ball, the Kuno gymnast continued, "Here, the Ball
of Anger, containing the frustration and belligerence of gymnastics
girls!" Without wasting another word, Kodachi threw the ball straight
toward Ranma.
  Effortlessly, Ranma sidestepped, the ball flying past him.
  Before he could get out a crack, something hit him in the back of
his head.
  "Ranma!" Akane yelled, too late to warn her husband of the ball's
return flight.
  Picking himself up, rubbing his sore head, Ranma watched the red
gymnastics ball return to Kodachi, hovering under its own power
before her. "I don't remember that thing doing that...."
  Stretching her ribbon in her fingers, Kodachi smiled. "Oh, but
Ranma-darling, that is only the beginning." Her smile transformed
into a frown, the girl's eyes fixing on Ranma like a hunter to prey.
Raising the ribbon high above, Kodachi snarled, "Oh, weep, Ribbon of
Tears! Let thine feelings rush onto mine enemy!"
  Lashing the ribbon against the ground, the magical ribbon produced
three shots of pink goo, aimed straight for Ranma.
  Pushing Akane aside, Ranma bolted, the sticky tears narrowly
missing him by centimeters. He ducked and jumped over Kodachi's
continued assault, careful not to touch the pink tears even when they
had collided with the ground or a wall.
  Taro folded his arms in amusement, leaning his back against the
outside wall. "Well, this is somewhat entertaining!" he said,
chuckling.
  Kuno watched as well, but without the same amusement as his
companion. His eyes darted from Kodachi to his sword, then to Ranma,
as if unsure of what he was supposed to do.
  Mousse shrugged, then buried his magic claws into the ground
once more.
  Ranma leaped away from another of Kodachi's attacks, but, as he
made his descent toward the ground, a single, piercing blade
stabbed through the earth. Screaming in panic, he aimed his feet
toward the flat of Mousse's magical blade, using it as a spring
board to escape from another of the Kuno girl's attacks.
  "That's not fair!" Ranma complained at the top of his lungs.
  Mousse smiled maliciously, his glasses glinting in the morning
sunlight. "There's no way you can beat ALL of us, Ranma!"
  "Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho!" laughed Kodachi. "Why do you not accept your
fate, darling?" she cried mockingly. "It would make this much easier
on the both of us!"
  "Sister, that's enough!" Kuno commanded, restraining Kodachi's arm
to prevent her from creating more projectiles.
  Ranma came to a halt when he realized what was happening. "Kuno...?"
  "Sister," Kuno repeated, "you must cease!"
  Struggling in her brother's hold, Kodachi shouted, "Why should I?!
Is it not enough that I am carrying-out the revenge you sought so?"
  Once again confusion washed over the elder Kuno's face. "I...."
  "Let her go, Poet."
  Without warning, Pantyhose Taro wrapped one arm around Kuno's
waist, and his other around the neck, forcing Kuno to release Kodachi
from his grasp.
  "Traitor!" he spat. "Only flakes like you would turn on family!"
  Just then, Taro tensed, feeling something cold against the back of
his neck.
  "It over," Shampoo said flatly, leveling a flamberge sword at the
base of Pantyhose Taro's neck. Behind her, Ryoga stood ready with his
umbrella for the slightest movement his adversary could make.
  The others stood, dumbfounded, at what just happened in the past
minute.
  Taro chuckled softly. "So, this is how it's going to be, eh?"
  "Shampoo!" Mousse cried, withdrawing his arms from the ground.
"Help us get Ranma!" Behind him, Ling-ling and Lung-lung nodded in
unison.
  Shampoo shook her head. "You know I can no do that."
  Raising his fists in anger, Mousse replied, "You...! Who's got you
into this, anyhow? The old hag, or your wimpy boyfriend Saotome?!"
  "He's married!" the twins pointed out, ever so quick to point out
Amazon law.
  "I do this not for Ranma, but for Shampoo alone!" replied the
Chinese Amazon. "I do not care about marriage; it is with the wind.
You not understand what is at stake here!"
  "Leave now, and we won't hold it against you," Ryoga added.
  "Shampoo, what the meaning of this?!" demanded Ling-ling.
  Unwilling to remove her eyes from Taro's exposed neck, Shampoo
replied, "You know very well what I mean! It over for you, too!"
  "But...."
  "Do you defend tribe, or not?!" she shouted, cutting off protests.
  Lung-lung was the first to notice that Mousse was reaching for
his claw weapons again, watching as his balled fists slowly retreated
back into the dark folds of his robes. Fixing her eyes back on
Shampoo, she cried, "Why you try to disgrace Mousse so?! Explain,
Shampoo!"
  "I not need to explain ANYTHING to you!" snapped Shampoo, refusing
to budge. "Mousse can die if it help; why you not see the larger
picture?!"
  As if ready to whip out a copy of Amazon laws, the younger girl
replied, "Defeat of warrior in formal challenge require death of
challenger; Mousse gave formal challenge, you interfere!"
  Without a word, Mousse backed down, his shoulders resting in a
slump, as if in defeat. Turning to the two Amazon twins at his sides,
he said, "Forget it. We're finished here."
  "B...but...." stuttered the twins.
  "You heard me, it's over," Mousse repeated. "What's done is done."
  Nodding silently, the twins leaped over the outer Tendo wall, and
Mousse followed soon thereafter.
  Akane and Ukyo watched the three Chinese leave.
  "What do you suppose this is all about?" asked Akane.
  Ukyo shrugged. "Beats me, but I'm willing to bet that it's got
something to do with just them."
  "An internal struggle, perhaps?" suggested Konatsu.
  Kodachi stepped closer to Shampoo, but Ryoga barred her way with
his umbrella, preventing the gymnast to get very close. "Even if
you do have the upper hand, I can still finish what I've started!"
  "Let it go," Taro whispered.
  "What?" asked Kodachi, as if she didn't hear his words.
  "I said, let it go!" the Chinese man repeated, releasing his
deadly hold on Kuno.
  Taro turned around to face Shampoo. "For now, that is," he added.
"Don't think for a moment that this is over."
  Kodachi latched onto Taro's shoulder, and, with the magic ball
trailing behind them, the couple walked out wordlessly, leaving Kuno
and the others behind.
  Watching his sister and her boyfriend, Kuno said to himself, "I
have chosen my path. Let it be not the wrong one."
  He felt a hand on his shoulder. "That was... brave of you."
  Folding his arms, refusing to turn around, Kuno replied, "The cost
of honor and loyalty is very high indeed, Ukyo Kuonji. I find that
Kodachi and I have returned to the state it once was but a year ago.
How easy it is to destroy a building built upon weak foundations."
  "Keep an eye on her," the okonomiyaki chef suggested. "I think
she needs you now more than ever."
  Nodding silently, Kuno walked off, following his sister home.
  Ranma stood next to Ukyo. "What was that all about?"
  "Don't you see?" Ukyo replied. "He's honor-bound to you, ever
since you saved his life a while back."
  Turning to Shampoo, Ranma said, "Thanks... I think."
  "You may not realize it, Ranma, but you are more important than
you think in grand scheme of things," Shampoo replied, sheathing her
flamberge over her back.
  "Oh, why's that?" he asked.
  "Because, Ranma," answered Ryoga, "you're the beginning, and the
end, of us all."

  Nabiki stepped out of the dressing room nervously, aware of what
she was wearing, and how many people there were running around in
the Gambling King's casino.
  She was unfamiliar in wearing particularly feminine clothing,
especially the extremities as a bunny suit-- it was nothing more
than a leotard mocked-up in the facsimile of a tuxedo.
  If anyone found out I landed serving as a job, I'd never hear the
end of it, Nabiki thought to herself. Nobody had better recognize
me....
  "Hey, Nabiki Tendo!" someone cried. "Is that you?"
  Great.
  Putting on her best smile, turning gracefully, Nabiki's eyes set
on the last person she expected to meet. "Tsubasa...."
  From the time she had known Tsubasa Kurenai, he usually dressed
in girls' clothing, but the man she saw before her was dressed in a
more masculine tuxedo, the men's uniform in the casino. His long,
fair hair, which usually added to his girlish disguises, was tied
back in a pony-tail.
  "Well, well, well!" Tsubasa said. "Looks like you're hitting the
big top!"
  "Why are you here?!" Nabiki demanded.
  Blowing his fingernails, he replied, "You know, school is out for
a bit, and I thought I'd see some of my favorite girls...."
  "In other words, you have free time again," concluded Nabiki.
  The tuxedo-clad man nodded. "I've gotten my hands on a ticket for
tonight's concert, too!" He waved a coupon in the air in excitement.
"It was hard, getting it, too!"
  "Especially since it is the LAST concert there will ever be,"
Nabiki pointed out. With Shampoo leaving to return home, the fivesome
would become a foursome. However, after careful thought and discussion
the five decided to disband completely.
  "And what would you be doing here, Big-shot?" asked Tsubasa.
Without waiting for a response, he reached into his coat and produced
a rolled-up poster. Unfurling it gently, he showed it to Nabiki. "I
would've thought you'd be too good for this! You're HERE!"
  Nabiki needed only one glance to know it was a Doco poster. "What
in the world are you doing walking around with this?!" But the middle
Tendo sister already knew the answer to that one: Tsubasa was here to
pick up pop singers.
  Hmmm... is THAT your game? she wondered.
  As soon as she finished her thought, Nabiki realized that Tsubasa
was now holding a camera, ready to shoot.
  "Hey!" she protested, yanking the camera free of the man's hands.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
  "Posterity shot," Tsubasa replied meekly.
  Is that so....
  "Please be careful with that," he added, indicating the camera.
"It's rented, and if you break it I won't be able to buy a ticket
home!"
  Ignoring Tsubasa's plight, Nabiki hit upon an idea.
  "Sooooo," she purred, "you want a picture of me in this get-up,"
waving her free hand up and down her body, "but there's something I
want from you as well."
  "A trading deal?" guessed the other.
  Nabiki nodded. "I'll let you take my picture, but first, you've
got to give me your uniform."
  The color drained from Tsubasa's eager face quickly. "A...and
then what am I supposed to wear?!"
  The middle Tendo girl tapped her chest lightly, which put Tsubasa
into rage. "H... hey! I have my limits!"
  Feigning demureness, Nabiki begged, "But don't you want Nabiki-poo
on your wall forever?"
  When she realized Tsubasa wouldn't change his position, another
idea dawned on Nabiki.
  "How about this?" she said, grabbing Tsubasa's hand. In short time
Nabiki lead the man to an empty poker table.
  "So, you want to make it a wager?" guessed Tsubasa.
  "Best three out of five."
  "And if I win, I get the picture."
  "If I win, I get your clothes."
  "Deal!" Tsubasa's lips curved into a devilish smile. Too bad for
you, girl, but you're not dealing with just any ordinary dealer!
  Too bad for you, Nabiki thought, as I've got skill that can wipe
you across the street.

  "I have no idea what you're talking about," Ranma said honestly.
  "Think of it this way," explained Ryoga. "The only reason why
we're all bothering you right now is because you brought us together.
And the only way we're going to go away is if you get rid of us."
  "Like you and Akari?" ventured the young Saotome.
  "That makes a great deal of sense to me," admitted Akane. "I mean,
look at what's been happening this past year: sure, we're probably
as close as we're ever going to get, but everybody is drifting
apart."
  "Great-grandmother close restaurant for good," remarked Shampoo.
"This time, we can no longer stay. There is trouble at home."
  "But that's not the reason why you're all here?" asked Ranma.
  Ukyo shook her head. "I'm not sure if any of you guys felt it, but
I think something is about to happen."
  "I'll say," agreed Ranma, recalling his sleep.
  "What's that?" asked Konatsu.
  "Nearly a month ago," Ukyo explained, "we prevented the Warmage
from bringing Nemesis into this world. I think it is only just now
that he has found a substitute to serve as the dark champion's host
body."
  "Who?" asked Ryoga.
  "It couldn't be one of us," Ranma said. "Warmage's presence is
very noticeable, you know."
  "True," agreed Ukyo. "But the problem is, we don't know what kind
of a host Warmage is looking for."
  "And therefore we won't know what to look for," concluded Akane.
  "In any case, if there's something we should all know," Ukyo
continued, "is that Ranma attracts trouble like a magnet."

  Following the rising sun back home, Tatewaki Kuno trailed behind
Kodachi and Taro, walking in their shadow, seemingly oblivious to
the rest of the world. Not once did either of the couple ahead of
him bother to look back.
  Silently, wordlessly, the three returned to the Kuno Estate; Taro
and Kodachi departed for the kitchen, while Tatewaki went in the
other direction. Walking several doors down the hallway, he reached
the room where his destiny changed forever.
  He pulled open the door, and stepped into the Phoenix Chamber.
  Throwing himself on the red carpet before the enshrined Phoenix
Egg, discarding his sword toward the unlit corners of the room, Kuno
tried in vain to clear his mind of turbulent thoughts.
  "Dammit," he cursed silently, throwing away all pretenses of
control, "what have I done?"
  After all, everything you know about life is wrong.

  And, at the opposing end of the Kuno Estate, Kodachi Kuno set
about wiping the blade of a cutting knife with a towel, staring
down at the cool metal, lost in thought. She had not said a word to
anyone since leaving the Tendo yard, especially not to her brother
or her boyfriend.
  "He's a traitor," Taro had said on the way home.
  At that moment, Taro was out in the yard feeding Midorigame, the
giant alligator, leaving Kodachi alone in the kitchen with her
thoughts.
  Why did he stop me? she wondered.
  For all seventeen years of her life, Kodachi could not recall a
single instance where Big Brother Tacchi laid a hand on her. Never.
Kodachi had guessed that such behavior was considered 'below him,'
but now, she had no idea what to think.
  Sure, he got in the way at times, but who didn't? Tatewaki Kuno
was the sort who was completely respectful to women, hiding among
his eccentricity of samurai fantasies. Not to mention that, he also
served as a sort of father while their real father was gone in
Hawaii for who-knows what reason (she didn't quite believe the
reasons either Father or Brother gave her).
  So why did he have to change now?
  Replacing the kitchen knife in its drawer, Kodachi marched out of
the kitchen, and proceeded down the hallway. The first open door she
found was the one, she knew.
  Sure enough, lying on the floor in the Phoenix Chamber was Tatewaki
Kuno, face down, as if dead and defeated.
  Dead?
  No, he wouldn't.... Would he?
  "Tacchi..." she whispered, stepping inside.
  No response.
  "Tacchi!!" she repeated, this time with more worry than before.
  Kodachi ran to where her brother lay, and bent down to her knees.
Without bothering to wipe away the tears forming in her eyes, she
shook Tatewaki's prone form.
  "TAAAACCCHIIII!!!" she screamed, almost wailed.
  At that instant Tatewaki's body sprung to life, startled. Sitting
up, he looked into his sister's eyes, and snapped, "DON'T DO THAT!!"
  Kodachi simply stared at her brother through teary eyes, unsure
whether to kill him for making her think he was dead, or....
  "'Thou art a soul in bliss,'" Tatewaki recited. "'But I am bound
upon a wheel of fire, that mine own tears do scald like molten lead.'
King Lear. Your tears are wasted upon me; shed them for your chosen
man. Leave me to my oblivion."
  The younger Kuno blinked. "You will not leave me alone, and just
the same, I will not leave you alone. I got it from you."
  She threw her arms around her brother, and buried her head on his
shoulder. Kodachi truly cried for the very first time.
  Surprised at his sister's unexpected behavior, Tatewaki could do
nothing but stroke his little sister's hair. Perhaps there is hope
after all.
  "You have grown up a fine young woman," he whispered proudly.
  "Shut up," Kodachi replied half-heartedly, choking on a sob.
  Poking his head in the doorway, Sasuke, standing in the hallway,
said, "Master?"
  "Shut the door, Sasuke," commanded Tatewaki.
  The diminutive man took one look at what his master and mistress
were doing in the Phoenix Chamber, then understood completely.
Silently, wordlessly, Sasuke slid the door shut.

  "I don't understand," Ling-ling said plainly in Chinese. "What
are we going to do now?"
  Her sister, Lung-lung, shrugged.
  The twins fixed their eyes on the defeated Mousse, walking quickly
ahead of them that sometimes they had to raise their walking speed to
keep up with him. Ever since Shampoo mentioned home, the Master of
Hidden Weapons seemed to lose the determination that won the two
girls over to his side many months before.
  "It means my homecoming will be in defeat," Mousse answered over
his shoulder. "It means I'm not the best, and Shampoo can never be
mine."
  "But Shampoo can no longer marry Ranma!" Lung-lung pointed out.
  "That is beside the point!" snapped the elder tribesman. "Shampoo
will always have a place for Ranma, no matter what! Just then, back
at the Tendo place, I saw it plainly-- she sided with Ranma! She
could care less about my code of honor. She'll never marry me."
  "I don't see how you drew that conclusion," replied Ling-ling.
  "Heh," chuckled Mousse mockingly. "I think I knew it for some time
now; perhaps the very idea of sending Ranma to the grave was just
the last string that needed to be cut. Illusions, bah! She doesn't
care about what I feel; it's all about herself and Ranma!"
  "But...."
  "The last time I was home, I think I was a lot smarter! And you
know what? Being the deluded fool that I was, I STILL loved Shampoo,
even though she could've cared less! I passed over a beautiful young
woman who was attracted to me for the dream!" He beat his fists
against his head. "Dammit, dammit, dammit! Why am I so stupid?!"
  "You mean the chef girl?" wondered Lung-lung.
  Ignoring the girl's question, Mousse continued his rant. "What kind
of a fool thinks he can win over the heart of someone who despises
him?! How could a fool like me believe that Shampoo would side with
us against Ranma? Dammit, WHY did it have to be HIM?!!"
  Throwing his arms into the air in frustration, Mousse continued.
"How could I have been so stupid to think I could change her?! Not
Shampoo, the cold, cruel heir to the tribe's leadership! She doesn't
care about the tribe's welfare; she cares about her own desires, her
own lusts, her own benefit! She could care less about anyone, much
less me! It's always Shampoo first!" Beating his fists against his
head once more, he growled, "Shampoo! The very THOUGHT of her is
revolting! Damn Shampoo!"
  Upon speaking her name, Mousse spat on the pavement. Both Amazon
girls stepped back in worry.
  "I'm no expert of love," began Lung-lung, "but while we're walking
around listening to you feel sorry for yourself, the girl that likes
you is sitting back there with Ranma."
  Those words made Mousse come to an abrupt stop, forcing the twins
to run into his back. Turning around, waving his fists menacingly,
he shouted, "Don't you get it?! I TOLD HER to stop loving me!!! It's
too late!!"
  "That may be so," continued the Amazon, "and it may be true that
her heart may yet still lust for Ranma, unattainable though he is,
but why are you accepting defeat before you tried?"
  "True enough," agreed Ling-ling. "You shouldn't give up so easily."
  Straightening up, Mousse forced himself to calm down. "Where'd you
two learn something like that?"
  Both girls looked at each other, then answered, "From you."

  Since it was still early in the morning, very few people were out
and about in the streets. Only two, a couple, could be seen for
blocks on end.
  The Lady Kuno, trailed by her husband, marched toward the Kuno
estate on foot. The principal, however, was burdened by the luggage
his wife purchased during their extended stay in Abu Dhabi.
  "I wonder what I should do with those children first?" Lady Kuno
asked herself, cracking her knuckles in anticipation. "Well, perhaps
first I should get that alligator turned into a handbag...."
  The principal ignored his wife's ranting, keeping his eyes focused
forward, the large luggage bag over his back, sweating profusely.
The lady had long since forced him to remove his Hawaiian attire,
so now he dressed in a more conservative business suit. The tree in
his head was even gone.
  Without warning, Kuno stopped in his tracks, a prick in the back of
his neck prompting him so. As if he grew a backbone, he released his
hold of the luggage bag, standing straight up.
  Lady Kuno came to a halt, feeling that her husband was not
following. Turning angrily, she shouted, "What are you waiting for?!"
  Kuno did not reply in words, but in actions; with his great arms
he grabbed his wife, holding her strongly.
  "What are you doing?!" demanded the lady.
  "He follows MY command now, not yers!" answered another voice.
A low, grating voice, as if someone were speaking from the depths of
the abyss. A hint of glee was not lost in the newcomer's tone.
  Craning her head over her husband's shoulder, Lady Kuno's eyes
fixed on the man standing behind the principal.
  She screamed.


"There is a storm coming... a storm of such magnitude, it is...
  BEYOND IMAGINATION!"
					-- Megatron, Beast Wars



(continued in Part 2)

                          *  *  *  *  *

  Yes, I know it starts slow.


----------------------------------------------------------
This has been yet another exercise in interpretation.
"Decepticons FOREVER!!" --Ravage, former Decepticon
"If you go to Z'ha'dum, you will die." --Kosh, Babylon 5

"[Y]ou're lamer than your signature and screen name indicate."--Chris Davies
"The FFML exists to judge the writing, not the writers."--Richard Lawson
"There was a recent case where a fanfic author put together his work with 
only another fanfic serving as his primary resource.  *I* started writing 
fanfiction that way, and consequently I never grew attached to this whole 
idea of remaining true to the original.  I call it "correction."--Reverend 
Prez

--Razorclaw X
Author: "Wheel of Fire", "The World's Worst Ranma Fanfic!", "The Geometry of 
Shattered Souls", "The Balance of Power".
"I sold my soul to buy a copy of the dubbed 'Ukyo Can Cook'"
"Pathetic authors beg for flames. Wait, that's me."


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